They make you feel bad about yourself while also making you feel good about them.
Big brands and big plastic have told us to recycle, knowing that recycling plastic doesn’t work. They had no intention that the plastic would ever be recycled. They make you feel good about their brand and make you feel bad about yourself by saying that you need to stop the plastic pollution problem. It’s your fault, they say. You should do better, they say. You should get your community involved, they say. You can solve this problem, they say. They don’t say that they will stop supplying plastic. They don’t provide you with any alternative packaging options. They don’t pick up your plastic waste themselves and properly dispose of it. They keep making more plastic and blaming you for it while they don’t provide any alternatives.
An example of corporate propaganda convincing consumers that the brand is not to blame, but the consumers are, is happening right now. This branding campaign with a considerable budget tells you that you are the problem, yet they are upstanding stewards of the Earth. As Janell pointed out in her blog post on Feb 25th, 2020, Lawsuit Calls Out Big Plastic; major brands have been lying to you for decades, spending billions of dollars to convince you that they are good and you need to do your part by recycling.
Plastic cannot be recycled. We know that now. It was all shipped to third-world countries without any expectation that it would be recycled. Big plastic never cared and doesn’t care now. Brands like Coca-Cola, Pepsi, P&G, Unilever, Chevron, Exxon, and many more all teamed up together to sell more plastic by telling you it was safe and recyclable, and you need to do your part. Well, they knew all along that plastic cannot be recycled, and now we are choking on it.
Plastic is in every breath of air you take, every glass of water you drink (even if it’s tap water), in every snowball you throw and flake you catch on your tongue, and in every raindrop. It’s in all your food, no matter what you eat, even if it’s a vegetable you grew in your own garden, there is plastic in it. It seems like the lie will continue from big brands and big plastic. P&G, Proctor & Gamble, just launched a new ad campaign aimed at making you feel good about them and bad about you, even though they don’t provide you with an alternative to plastic and they don’t clean up their mess. Fast Company published a great article on this subject:
“Why P&G is asking you to change your habits to save the planet.”
A young girl named Louisa is a cosmic space traveler who has decided to make Earth her new home planet. She takes the opportunity to point out some new rules that will require us to adjust our consumption habits to save her newly adopted residence. Use cold water. Use less water and electricity. Use recycled plastic and less packaging. “Resource conservation is vital,” she says as Dad turns off the tap while shaving. “My beautiful planet will be respected, which may require some sacrifices.”
Fast Company’s Jeff Beer writes: Why P&G is asking you to change your habits to save the planet You can read the full article here: Tide – P&G
